One of these days I'll have to make a list of the movies I've seen at midnight. It's getting quite long (Harry Potter, Spiderman, Pirates, X-Files 2, more Harry Potter).
I saw Hunger Games last night - I think it's the first movie I've seen since moving to Alabama. I saw it at this cool 100-year old theater in downtown Mobile called the Crescent, where they serve beer and wine in addition to the typical popcorn and candy and the owner talks about the movie before he begins the screening (for this one he talked about how it's getting great reviews, unlike Twilight).
The movie was great (I loved the book), but I'm too tired to go into it more than that for now except to say that the casting was actually quite brilliant, and it was definitely worth the fatigue this morning.
Have a good weekend! Curtis gets back tomorrow evening.
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
Friday, March 23, 2012
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Academy Awards Best Picture Nominees
I made an observation to my mom the other day, that I was looking forward to the Oscars this year because the movies seem more accessible to me this year. "Accessible to me" has a very personal meaning. As some of you know, I am unable to sit through movies with graphic violence. So, as much as I would be interested in movies such as "Inglorious Basterds", or "Gladiator" there is no way I can watch - it's just too much. Plus, I generally won't see the artsy movies, unless my mom recommends them.
But then I realized that with movies like "True Grit" and "Black Swan," two movies that are probably inaccessible to me (although I've heard that I might be okay in "True Grit," and the PG-13 rating helps) are up for awards. So I decided to use the blog to analyze the nominees to determine whether I have, or will, see the movie. If I have time I'll also look at the last few years as a comparison.
2011 Nominees:
Inception - just saw it, very cool idea. Should win cinematography and probably nothing else
The King's Speech - my kind of movie: no violence, British historical drama, Colin Firth... I would see this even if it wasn't so good
The Social Network - will see this weekend, again, happy that violence isn't involved
127 Hours - will certainly not see this movie. His story makes me cringe.
The Fighter - I actually think I could cope with this movie, I loved "Million Dollar Baby," but for some reason I'm not particularly drawn to the movie, except to see why everyone thinks Christian Bale gave a better performance than Geoffrey Rush in "The King's Speech"
True Grit - See my comment above. I'm thinking about seeing this in theater.
The Kids are Alight - This is the movie I'm constantly forgetting about but that I definitely want to see. I'll probably rent this soon.
Winter's Bone - I have no idea what this movie is about.
Toy Story 3 - Saw this on the airplane: I laughed and I cried. I have no idea why this is nominated for Best Picture, but I'm glad I saw it.
Black Swan - I will rent this, watch it in the middle of the day, and fast forward through stuff. This is one of the few movies that I really want to see but know that I won't get through unless I can edit it.
6 out of 10 isn't bad. Lets look at 2010:
Avatar - watched
The Blind Side - watched
District 9 - watched (borderline movie for me, but the fantasy element of aliens helps with my nerves)
An Education - no idea what the movie was about
The Hurt Locker - no way I could see this
Inglorious Basterds - no way I could see this
Precious - need to see, like, now.
A Serious Man - don't know what this was about
Up - watched
Up In the Air - need to see, like, now.
Tally for 2010? 6 out 10 - I'm surprised that last year's tally is the same. I suppose the tie goes to this year because of the number of movies I will finish BEFORE the awards show.
So what about 2009? (aka the year I had no life b/c I was a 1L in law school and planning a wedding)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - I could see this, but the length scared me off
Frost/Nixon - watched
Milk - watched
The Reader - could see, but didn't
Slumdog Millionaire - This is probably the only movie from that year that I wasn't comfortable watching.
This was probably a rare year in which there wasn't a best picture nominee (or two) with a lot of violence.
2008:
No Country for Old Men - definitely wouldn't watch it
Atonement - watched
Juno - never saw (I know, I should have)
Michael Clayton - watched (good movie!)
There will be Blood - definitely wouldn't watch it.
2007:
The Departed - want to watch, but scared
Babel - nope
Letters from Iwo Jima - I like historical movies, but probably not
Little Miss Sunshine - could watch, but haven't
The Queen - watched
(I looked at 2006 and decided that I couldn't remember what at least 2 of the movies were about, so I decided I had gone far back enough)
Conclusions? Well, this year is more of the norm for me, than the exception. If there was a strange year, it was 2009, which if I remember correctly was a weak year in terms of movies.
Well, if nothing else, this was a good reminder of the recent good movies, and gives me a convenient list of what I want to watch :-).
But then I realized that with movies like "True Grit" and "Black Swan," two movies that are probably inaccessible to me (although I've heard that I might be okay in "True Grit," and the PG-13 rating helps) are up for awards. So I decided to use the blog to analyze the nominees to determine whether I have, or will, see the movie. If I have time I'll also look at the last few years as a comparison.
2011 Nominees:
Inception - just saw it, very cool idea. Should win cinematography and probably nothing else
The King's Speech - my kind of movie: no violence, British historical drama, Colin Firth... I would see this even if it wasn't so good
The Social Network - will see this weekend, again, happy that violence isn't involved
127 Hours - will certainly not see this movie. His story makes me cringe.
The Fighter - I actually think I could cope with this movie, I loved "Million Dollar Baby," but for some reason I'm not particularly drawn to the movie, except to see why everyone thinks Christian Bale gave a better performance than Geoffrey Rush in "The King's Speech"
True Grit - See my comment above. I'm thinking about seeing this in theater.
The Kids are Alight - This is the movie I'm constantly forgetting about but that I definitely want to see. I'll probably rent this soon.
Winter's Bone - I have no idea what this movie is about.
Toy Story 3 - Saw this on the airplane: I laughed and I cried. I have no idea why this is nominated for Best Picture, but I'm glad I saw it.
Black Swan - I will rent this, watch it in the middle of the day, and fast forward through stuff. This is one of the few movies that I really want to see but know that I won't get through unless I can edit it.
6 out of 10 isn't bad. Lets look at 2010:
Avatar - watched
The Blind Side - watched
District 9 - watched (borderline movie for me, but the fantasy element of aliens helps with my nerves)
An Education - no idea what the movie was about
The Hurt Locker - no way I could see this
Inglorious Basterds - no way I could see this
Precious - need to see, like, now.
A Serious Man - don't know what this was about
Up - watched
Up In the Air - need to see, like, now.
Tally for 2010? 6 out 10 - I'm surprised that last year's tally is the same. I suppose the tie goes to this year because of the number of movies I will finish BEFORE the awards show.
So what about 2009? (aka the year I had no life b/c I was a 1L in law school and planning a wedding)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - I could see this, but the length scared me off
Frost/Nixon - watched
Milk - watched
The Reader - could see, but didn't
Slumdog Millionaire - This is probably the only movie from that year that I wasn't comfortable watching.
This was probably a rare year in which there wasn't a best picture nominee (or two) with a lot of violence.
2008:
No Country for Old Men - definitely wouldn't watch it
Atonement - watched
Juno - never saw (I know, I should have)
Michael Clayton - watched (good movie!)
There will be Blood - definitely wouldn't watch it.
2007:
The Departed - want to watch, but scared
Babel - nope
Letters from Iwo Jima - I like historical movies, but probably not
Little Miss Sunshine - could watch, but haven't
The Queen - watched
(I looked at 2006 and decided that I couldn't remember what at least 2 of the movies were about, so I decided I had gone far back enough)
Conclusions? Well, this year is more of the norm for me, than the exception. If there was a strange year, it was 2009, which if I remember correctly was a weak year in terms of movies.
Well, if nothing else, this was a good reminder of the recent good movies, and gives me a convenient list of what I want to watch :-).
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Saturday Morning
I have a bad habit - I'm always awake on Saturday morning well before I'd like to be. Often it's before I wake up on a weekday, which is really annoying. But, since I'm on vacation, I'll just take a nap this afternoon before dinner.
Curtis and I are spending the weekend w/ my parents & Jon at the Rancho Mirage Westin. Our room is so nice, and I'm out here on the patio with a view of the pool playing on my laptop. Because I'm not in the mood to work (it's hard to get motivated to read employment discrimination cases on a Saturday morning in the desert), I thought I'd post a quick blog update.
Nothing has really changed since my last post, but I only have about 2.5 weeks left of my job at the Disability Rights Legal Center. I think most of that time will be spent tying up loose ends. It's amazing how fast 10 weeks goes - I understand why people during their summers complain that they didn't get much done - there just isn't time. I was fortunate to be able to work on two briefs for the lead Litigation attorney, and I think I made a good impression with my work product - we will see.
Last year I did my summer movie list - movies I hoped to see, and then movies that I did, in fact, see. Well, didn't set that up this year, but I have seen some interesting movies. The Hangover was good, and My Sister's Keeper was good but Tracy and I cried the entire time. Harry Potter was okay - I want to see it again while fully awake. Transformers II was surprisingly good, if you ignore the plot, and Bruno was disappointing. It's nice living walking distance from a theater and having a roommate who likes movies - we've gotten out to see many of the big ones this year.
Anyway, I hope you're enjoying your weekend as much as I am enjoying mine. I'll try to do an update soon. August is a big month for job searching - so big changes ahead. School starts August 24, so I'll have a few weeks where my schedule is more flexible. I'm thinking a trip to the Bay Area might be in the works.
Reminder - I put a bunch of wedding photos on our family blog: christineandcurtis.blogspot.com. Most of the same photos are on facebook.
Happy Saturday!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Update - and movie review!
Hi there,
I wanted to post a quick note. The wedding is less than 4 weeks away (yay!). Finals start a week from today (ack!). But this past weekend I was in Boston attending a very fun Bar Mitzvah. It was my first bar/bat mitzvah experience and it was wonderful. The ceremony was beautiful and Shane (the bar mitzvah) did a wonderful job reading from the Torah.
His party was Red Sox -Themed; we sat at a table called "The Green Monster". We watched all the 13-year olds dancing and playing games and we even got up and did a little dancing ourselves. And my mom and I had the honor of lighting one of Shane's cake candles.
In between the ceremony/luncheon and the night party, my mom and I watched Rachel Getting Married. It is definitely relevant in light of my impending wedding, and my mom and I now have a joke that if I start getting irritable, she'll tell me not to be like Rachel. It's a serious movie, but it's extremely good and I am so glad we finally watched it. It's very interesting and very honest. We both want to watch it again to get more from it, because there are many things to consider: why was the mother so detached, why was the father so affectionate? What role did the fiance's family have in all of this? Anyway, I realize this all sounds cryptic if you haven't seen it, but it was really thought -provoking.
That's all for now - have a good week :-)
I wanted to post a quick note. The wedding is less than 4 weeks away (yay!). Finals start a week from today (ack!). But this past weekend I was in Boston attending a very fun Bar Mitzvah. It was my first bar/bat mitzvah experience and it was wonderful. The ceremony was beautiful and Shane (the bar mitzvah) did a wonderful job reading from the Torah.
His party was Red Sox -Themed; we sat at a table called "The Green Monster". We watched all the 13-year olds dancing and playing games and we even got up and did a little dancing ourselves. And my mom and I had the honor of lighting one of Shane's cake candles.
In between the ceremony/luncheon and the night party, my mom and I watched Rachel Getting Married. It is definitely relevant in light of my impending wedding, and my mom and I now have a joke that if I start getting irritable, she'll tell me not to be like Rachel. It's a serious movie, but it's extremely good and I am so glad we finally watched it. It's very interesting and very honest. We both want to watch it again to get more from it, because there are many things to consider: why was the mother so detached, why was the father so affectionate? What role did the fiance's family have in all of this? Anyway, I realize this all sounds cryptic if you haven't seen it, but it was really thought -provoking.
That's all for now - have a good week :-)
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Tuesday Updates - 1/13/09
Sorry for the late Updates, it was tough getting back into the school routine yesterday.
Weekend:
I had a very fun weekend. On Saturday Curtis, me, Curtis' dad, and Nick went to a tux shop to order tuxes for the wedding party and VIP's. I was very happy with what Curtis picked, I think he and the guys are going to look great. After that my dad and I drove down to Oceanside (78 degree weather, convertible top down, :-) for my Grandpa's 79th birthday party. My aunt has two new pets!
My dad and I had fun playing with the new pets, I have always liked pet snakes (not that I want one) and the bearded dragon was awesome.
On Sunday I watched The Dutchess while packing up to go home. If you like period dramas, this is a good one. Predictable yet intriguing plot, with an interesting ending. Then on Sunday I headed back up to Los Angeles and back to the whirlwind that is law school.
Law School:
This semester I'm taking Constitutional Law, Property, Criminal Law, Legal Profession, and the usual Legal Research and Writing. So far I like all of my professors, and I even got called on in my Conlaw class and did fine. So I'm hopeful that this semester will be as good, if not better than the last.
I got my first grade from last semester yesterday, in Civil Procedure, and I was very excited about it. I'm very grateful and am now anxiously waiting for my 4 other grades.
Movies:
My ambitious winter break movie list was just too ambitious for me. It's amazing how easily time gets filled up, and how an illness can derail many of your plans. But I did manage to see 2 movies on the list:
Australia - the more I think about this movie, the more I love it. I just think it was so genuine and sentimental, and the scenery is gorgeous. I've always liked Baz Luhrmann movies (Moulin Rouge!, Romeo & Juliet...) and this was no exception. Plus, it's a really good story with many different and overlapping themes. Overall, it is definitely a movie I want to see again and eventually own.
Frost/Nixon - The thing that comes to mind when I think of this movie is how good the acting was. I think Frank Langella had an uncanny ability to embody Nixon's perspective. It was compelling and exciting, which is quite something for a predictable plot, not unlike what I've heard from people who've seen Valkrie. Overall I wasn't as awestruck as I was when I saw Australia, but I still enjoyed and appreciated this movie.
That's all for now. Have a good week!
Weekend:
I had a very fun weekend. On Saturday Curtis, me, Curtis' dad, and Nick went to a tux shop to order tuxes for the wedding party and VIP's. I was very happy with what Curtis picked, I think he and the guys are going to look great. After that my dad and I drove down to Oceanside (78 degree weather, convertible top down, :-) for my Grandpa's 79th birthday party. My aunt has two new pets!
Drago: 
and Jose!
and Jose!
My dad and I had fun playing with the new pets, I have always liked pet snakes (not that I want one) and the bearded dragon was awesome.On Sunday I watched The Dutchess while packing up to go home. If you like period dramas, this is a good one. Predictable yet intriguing plot, with an interesting ending. Then on Sunday I headed back up to Los Angeles and back to the whirlwind that is law school.
Law School:
This semester I'm taking Constitutional Law, Property, Criminal Law, Legal Profession, and the usual Legal Research and Writing. So far I like all of my professors, and I even got called on in my Conlaw class and did fine. So I'm hopeful that this semester will be as good, if not better than the last.
I got my first grade from last semester yesterday, in Civil Procedure, and I was very excited about it. I'm very grateful and am now anxiously waiting for my 4 other grades.
Movies:
My ambitious winter break movie list was just too ambitious for me. It's amazing how easily time gets filled up, and how an illness can derail many of your plans. But I did manage to see 2 movies on the list:
Australia - the more I think about this movie, the more I love it. I just think it was so genuine and sentimental, and the scenery is gorgeous. I've always liked Baz Luhrmann movies (Moulin Rouge!, Romeo & Juliet...) and this was no exception. Plus, it's a really good story with many different and overlapping themes. Overall, it is definitely a movie I want to see again and eventually own.
Frost/Nixon - The thing that comes to mind when I think of this movie is how good the acting was. I think Frank Langella had an uncanny ability to embody Nixon's perspective. It was compelling and exciting, which is quite something for a predictable plot, not unlike what I've heard from people who've seen Valkrie. Overall I wasn't as awestruck as I was when I saw Australia, but I still enjoyed and appreciated this movie.
That's all for now. Have a good week!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Winter Break Movie List
After hearing the Golden Globe Nominations today, it made me realize that once again, most of my Christmas break will be spent seeing movies. I am happy to see that there are movies this year that seem to be intellectually stimulating, as opposed to the typical romantic comedy or action thriller. Here's my priority list (with links to Roger Ebert's reviews):
1. Australia - never miss a Baz movie.
2. Seven Pounds - same with Will Smith
3. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4. Frost/Nixon
5. Doubt
6. Milk
7. Revolutionary Road
8. Slumdog Millionaire
9. Rachel Getting Married (if it's still in theater)
10. Role Models
I'd also like to see a few movies now on DVD:
- The Dark Knight (I haven't seen it yet and feel ashamed)
- Maid of Honor
- Iron Man
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall
1. Australia - never miss a Baz movie.
2. Seven Pounds - same with Will Smith
3. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4. Frost/Nixon
5. Doubt
6. Milk
7. Revolutionary Road
8. Slumdog Millionaire
9. Rachel Getting Married (if it's still in theater)
10. Role Models
I'd also like to see a few movies now on DVD:
- The Dark Knight (I haven't seen it yet and feel ashamed)
- Maid of Honor
- Iron Man
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall
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